Some states require its students to fulfill a community service requirement before graduating from high school. Homeschoolers who follow the traditional high school sequence in those states may choose to do that, too.

Even if community service is not required, it isn’t a bad idea to consider adding volunteer hours to the high school portfolio and transcript. It’s good for the student and those it helps. Plus, colleges and scholarship committees expect grads to demonstrate a background in service and/or leadership anyway. Volunteerism is a way to meet both of these goals at once.

Where and how should homeschoolers volunteer? Again, the laws of your state will always prevail. But when given a choice, parents and teens may decide when and how to earn service hours.

Students who belong to service organizations usually have no difficulty finding volunteer opportunities. Working one weekend per month with a church group, community group, or other established service organization is an excellent way to learn about giving while easily knocking out hours at the same time.

Students may also volunteer independently, by seeking out people and programs that can use a little extra help. Hospitals, libraries, animal shelters, emergency-responder groups and a variety of others often welcome responsible youth ready to help make a difference. Even senior centers, community clubs and private individuals sometimes need volunteers, so it’s important to keep those folks in mind, as well.

Tracking volunteer hours is easy. A simple tracking sheet or record-keeping log is easy to create (or you can print ours for free HERE). If a certain number of hours is required, just enter a grand total at the end of each semester or academic year. Also remember to save any documentation, including authorized signatures from contact personnel, should verification of your child’s hours ever be needed down the road.

Community service is valuable on many levels and recommend for all graduates, not just those looking for recognition and scholarship awards. On the other hand, if your teen will be shopping for colleges (and college money!) down the road, why not do it right and treat volunteer hours as you would any other high school course? By tracking and keeping a paper-trail of the hours, you’ll be covered either way.

If dual enrollment isn’t in your high schooler’s future but you’d still like your teen to take college classes, free college online could be the ticket. At least a dozen major universities now offer “open” courses to the public — free. These are actual college lectures from major colleges and universities that are recorded and made available online, with no obligation whatsoever, to anyone with an interest and a high-speed Internet connection.

Imagine being able to have your high schooler sit in on a History of Art class at Yale, a Psychology course at UCLA or a Chemical Engineering class at MIT. Using open courseware, this is now a reality.

Perhaps you’re wondering how these courses might be used for homeschooling? Offering advanced high school credit is one way. For instance, just like you’d “weight” an AP or honors course more than a traditional high school course, you can weight the college course when applying it to the GPA. (This is called a “weighted GPA”.)

A second way is to use the courses to supplement other learning going on at home. For example, a student studying a topic at home could use as many of the college lectures as would be needed to reinforce learning, or satisfy whatever remaining hours you’ve established to award credit.

Gauging interest is a third option. One never knows when a spark of interest may ignite in a student! Watching online college lectures can help teens learn more about different areas and think about if these courses/careers might have a place in their future.

Lastly, there is great intrinsic value here. Like anything else, students of all ages can watch just because they want to. Whether one completes an entire course or just a sampling of lectures offered by a variety of different lecturers, the opportunities for learning are endless — and don’t forget, free.

If you still have questions, let’s schedule a consultation. I’d be glad to meet with you and your student to customize a program that fits just right.

To your success,

Dr. Marie-Claire Moreau is a college professor who traded in her tenure to become a homeschool mom 20+ years ago. A homeschool pioneer and the founder of many groups and organizations, she works to advance home education, and is an outspoken supporter of education reform coast to coast. Her book, Suddenly Homeschooling: A Quick Start Guide to Legally Homeschool in Two Weeks, is industry-acclaimed for illustrating how homeschooling can rescue children and families from the public school system, and how anyone can begin homeschooling within a limited time-frame, with no teaching background whatsoever. A writer, a homeschool leader, and a women’s life coach, Marie-Claire mentors in a variety of areas that impact health, education and lifestyle. A conference speaker, she has appeared at FPEA, H.E.R.I., Home Education Council of America, The Luminous Mind, Vintage Homeschool Moms, iHomeschool Network, and many other events. Her articles have appeared in and on Holistic Parenting, CONNECT,Homefires, Homemaking Cottage, Kiwi, Circle of Moms, and hundreds of sites and blogs nationwide. Marie-Claire can be reached at contactmarieclaire@gmail.com.

Probably one of the most common questions homeschoolers ask is what to teach. Even outsiders are prone to wondering how moms and dads decide what to cover each year, some even assuming that school districts provide the actual curriculum to follow.

The truth is that homeschooling parents decide exactly what to teach, and when, if ever. With the exception of states that mandate the teaching of certain subjects, such as health and physical education (required in Pennsylvania) or music and drawing (mandated in Massachusetts), parents not only decide upon the curriculum but are free to change it at any time along the way. (Find out what your state requires HERE.)

While the ability to choose is very appealing to some families, others prefer to follow an outline. Knowing what others are teaching, what is taught in schools or what is assumed to be the proper grade sequence can be comforting to those who prefer to follow a previously-designed curriculum, rather than creating one on their own.

There are many places to find this kind of information. After browsing through these books, research and other resources, parents can then choose what they’d like to teach in their own homes.*

Standard Textbooks and Curriculum Products: Books and curriculum systems are designed to be followed from beginning to end. Following the table of contents or daily lesson plan is a way to cover all of the material that the author or publisher recommends for that age/grade child. Merely teaching the lessons in order or reading the chapters in sequence can work as a spine or an entire course in those subject areas.

Core Knowledge Recommendations: A content-specific guide that parents can follow year by year, grade by grade, to insure progress of knowledge and skills for grades K-8. Used by schools and homeschoolers alike and can be followed in part, or in its entirety. Books are available for purchase, plus the entire sequence may be downloaded free HERE.

World Book Typical Course of Study: Based on research and combined with the study of national courses and syllabuses, World Book offers a free curriculum guide for parents with students PreK-12. The curriculum, outlined in a yearly format, details what is generally required for every grade across the US. It provides a detailed guide of topics and major concepts in most academic areas typically taught in homeschool. Find it HERE.

Homeschooling Helps: Several books have been written about what to teach and how to design a homeschool curriculum. These books are available from book resellers and online. Just two of the books are pictured here, but readers are encouraged to search for others on their own.

National Curriculum and Standards: Sets of standards have existed for years and are thought to insure that all classroon students are prepared for graduation and the workforce. Many states recently adopted the Common Core Standards which are purported to be benchmarked to international standards, thus insuring that students nationally emerge as competitive in the global marketplace. The Common Core Standards can be viewed HERE. Other standards, like the new Social Studies Standards and even the older NSTA Science Standards may also be helpful for seeing what is typically taught in each grade across the US.

Online Philosophy- and Method-Specific Guides: For those who have made the decision to homeschool following a particular philosophy or using a particular method, online guides can offer the structure and information needed to homeschool by grade, every single year. Charlotte Mason users, for example, may like the free Ambleside Online Curriculum, and those looking for an old-fashioned biblical education based on old texts and free downloadable books might like the curriculum plan offered by Old Fashioned Education.

Finally, families using an eclectic homeschooling approach should be encouraged to use bits and pieces of any of the above. Curricular recommendations may be used in whole or in part, or can be modified too, determined only by the needs of individual homeschoolers.

**The products pictured in this post are merely examples of the many options available for purchase or download. They are shown to help the reader and should not be misconstrued as an endorsement or recommendation for any of the specific items or products shown here. Note that, unless specified, we receive no benefit, compensation or recognition for featuring products on Quick Start Homeschool.

There is also the matter of topics that parents just don’t want to teach on their own. For me, it was animal biology lab; for you, it could be something else — take sewing, drawing or computer programming, for example. Personally, the thought of dissecting earth worms, frogs, and fetal pigs made me cringe. And though I secured a virtual dissection program, I just didn’t feel it would offer the same experience as hands-on. Finally, when a friend suggested I get free eye balls from the butcher to save money on lab specimens, that cinched it. I wasn’t teaching biology lab.

Many parents have courses that they’d just prefer not to teach. The fact is, not everyone is going to be good at teaching everythinganyway. It’s just silly to think that homeschool parents can do everything themselves.

So what if your children like a subject that you can’t teach? Or what if your kids love a topic that you simply find distasteful? And — worse – what if one of those courses is required?

Here’s the good news — homeschooled kids don’t have to miss out on courses just because parents aren’t able to teach them. In today’s world of homeschooling, there are many, many other ways to learn material than from just mom or dad.

In my case, I decided to farm out the biology class. Given my experience during the “bug years” (during which I blocked out most unpleasant memories but do recall being appointed to do things like dig entire ant colonies out of the ground and look for the queens under rocks at dawn), I decided this would be the best course of action for my family. Because the creepiness factor was multiplied exponentially for biology in my case, having my children learn the subject from someone who was enthusiastic about it was very important to me, especially because I knew some of them would really like it. So, I combined books with cooperative experiences and an honors biology course. And we had a much better result –just ask my kids.

With the myriad of options available to homeschoolers today, parents needn’t worry about teaching something they can’t. The hundreds of curriculum products, virtual course options, private classes and at-home study programs make it simple for homeschoolers to learn in many different ways. They’ll not only learn from an expert, but receive much more comprehensive coverage and in-depth study than learning from someone whose heart isn’t really into it. They’ll be proud to have completed the experience entirely on their own (or maybe with another sibling?) rather than relying solely on mom or dad to help. Plus, once an older child has completed a course this way, he’ll be able to help younger siblings when they reach the course — a guarantee that mom or dad will never have to teach it again!

Dollar-store calculators can be loads of fun. In a pinch, having an inexpensive calculator in the car or in your briefcase is never a bad idea.

But there comes a time when your homeschooler needs a better one. That time may come sooner than you think — usually somewhere between 2nd-5th grades, depending on the child and the level of mathematics you teach.

During the elementary years is when your child will need to learn 2 things: how to properly use a calculator, and how to check work. Because dollar-store calculators cannot do everything that kids need to do in math, and they are usually unreliable anyway (expiring at the most inconvenient times), it’s important to have a good calculator ready at home.

Buying a calculator early is a good idea since there is no sense in having to learn twice — have your child learn on the calculator she’ll be using throughout the remainder of her school years.

Families and teachers seem to agree that Texas Instruments (TI) makes a good calculator. With calculators for every application in all price ranges, homeschoolers will always find a TI calculator to meet their needs.

For the lower grades, something in the 30+ range will usually do the trick. A calculator like this one will probably do through most of middle school:

For high schoolers, particularly those who take honors, AP or college dual enrollment math, a more sophisticated model is needed. A graphing calculator in the 80+ range and upwards will probably be sufficient:

Plan to spend $20+ for lower grades and $100 or more for upper grades. Despite the price, this investment proves to be well worth it as these last a long time and can be used by multiple children for many years.

Finally, keep calculator instructions in a safe place. You’ll never know when you or your student forgets how to input a certain type of equation or cannot locate a function. While the instruction manual isn’t usually needed in lower school, it can be a life-saver once the kids get older.

If there is one thing that homeschoolers pretty much all have in common, it’s a willingness to help other families along the journey. Homeschooling moms and dads are well known for their patience with newbies and spirit of generosity when it comes to talking about homeschooling with pretty much anyone who needs help.

As the number of homeschoolers continues to grow, there continues to be no end to the amount of free help and support offered to families coast to coast.

On the other hand, as the number of homeschoolers continues to grow, an increasing number of homeschool consulting services are popping up as well. These businesses are usually comprised of parents who are presently homeschooling, or who have finished homeschooling their own children, and now are offering consulting services for a fee.

Should families pay for homeschooling help? Like anything else homeschooling, families must make that decision for themselves.

Before paying for consulting services, however, consider these important questions:

Are similar services offered elsewhere, either nearby or within easy reach, for free? Have you asked friends, support groups, local contacts, and scoured the Internet to see if the answers may be available free elsewhere?

Does the consultant have the required experience, background, or expertise in the area that you are needing help in? Not everyone can do everything.

Does the company web site have testimonials of satisfied clients or, better yet, can the consultant give you references that you can call?

Have you been offered a free consultation? Will you be asked to pre-pay for a specified number of hours or can you pay-as-you-go? This is important in case you are unhappy with the association and decide to drop out.

Is everything you discuss completely confidential? How do you know?

Is there any conflict of interest you may have overlooked? Are you comfortable using an individual that may also be affiliated with your local school district, for example?

After asking these questions, use intuition combined with good common sense to decide if the purchase of consulting hours is worth your while. Though most homeschoolers get along just fine without paid help along the way, should you decide to go this route, you’ll want to be sure to get the most from your money.

One of the freedoms that home educators have is deciding whether or not to award grades for academic work. Generally speaking, unless a student is enrolled in a private, virtual, college or other program for which grades are given, academic grades are not really required in homeschooling. Nevertheless, many families — particularly those with middle and high schoolers — choose to assign grades anyhow. There are some excellent reasons why.

One reason to grade student work is to document progress, required in some states. Though there are other (some would argue — better) ways to measure student performance, grades can be used for this purpose in areas where homeschoolers must show progress or meet benchmarks every year.

Another reason to use grades in homeschool is purely for information. Students and their parents need — and often enjoy — knowing the status of a course, where the student stands, and what areas potentially need improvement. Whether a family believes in grading or not, having this bit of information, or combining it with other measures, can be helpful in gauging general performance.

Believe it or not, a lot of students are actually motivated by a grading system. Trying to best a previous score or achieve the highest possible grade on an assignment can encourage and stimulate certain students to do their best work.

Grades can level the playing field when homeschooled kids participate in mainstream activities. Joining clubs, sports and other activities often require a mean cutoff grade point (GPA) for participation. Having an academic grade report means that homeschoolers can participate just like anyone else.

Finally, one cannot discount the importance of having grades to put on the high school transcript. Most colleges and universities look for a transcript during the applications process. Unless there is a particular admissions procedure allowing homeschoolers to circumvent the this requirement, it can be a good idea to have a transcript with grades ready come time for college applications.

otwithstanding, there are many other valid reasons for homeschoolers to consider awarding grades. Even if parents never disclose these grades to their children,

When children are young, parents tend to have little trouble helping with school work. As a matter of fact, in the early years, many homeschooling moms and dads operate very nicely without so much as a teacher’s manual or an answer key.

As students grow older and the work becomes more difficult, however, parents aren’t always able or available to help with every subject. Though not always the case, it appears that mathematics tends to be one of those subjects.

Research has shown that homeschooled students not only succeed, but usually exceed the standards set by their peers in public schools, even when their parents do not have the highest level of education. This means that parents do not always need to know every subject in order for their children to do well in homeschool. That’s because there are many tools that can help students to learn, even when parents are unable to help.

The trick is learning to find the right tools to help solve the right problem.

So, where can homeschooled students (and their parents) turn for math help?

Here are a few suggestions:

1. Another adult

Even if mom or dad can’t help, another adult just might be able to figure it out. Friends, neighbors, aunts and uncles are all good choices. Fellow homeschoolers can also help. Not everyone can be good at everything. But chances are, you already know someone who can help with your student’s particular challenge.

2. A sibling

You’d be surprised at how much material siblings seem to magically pick up by virtue of sharing a room or just completing schoolwork within the same vicinity of one another. Just watching and listening to brothers and sisters can result in the immediate absorption of what the others are learning. An older sibling, and even a younger one, can be a great resource. Plus, even if the sibling can’t figure out the answer, he or she learns something by trying, anyway.

3. The publisher/vendor

Depending on which book, curriculum, or other resource you’re using, you may be entitled to support or other help from either the publisher or vendor you purchased from. Some companies offer a knowledge base of commonly-encountered problems on their web site. Others have a comprehensive set of FAQs that cover a lot of the basics. Browse the company web site or make a telephone call. It doesn’t hurt to ask.

4. The Internet

There is no end to the content that is continually being added to web sites all around the world. With some patience and basic online searching skills, you can probably find a web site or online lesson plan that covers the exact topic your student is attempting to learn. In mathematics, for instance, you’ll find hundreds of online math sites, math games, and even math videos that teach specific topics for free. Try MathVids, Visual Math Learning and Khan Academy video lessons for starters. Or visit Ask Dr. Math, AAA Math, Figure This, Math with Larry, Cool Math, Math dot com, and Free Math Help, just to name a few.

5. Another homeschooler

Sometimes homeschooled kids can only be helped by other kids who understand. Homeschooled students who are slightly older, or who just completed the same material a year or two ago, may be able to explain the concept to your child in a language he or she can understand. Plus, if you are lucky enough to know a child who used the same book or curriculum your child is using, you might also gain additional insights from the more experienced student about how to use that book or resource in the future.

6. Private tutors / tutoring centers

Though this can be expensive, tutoring can sometimes be worth the expense just to get a child over the hump and onto smoother ground. Even just a couple of tutoring sessions, taught by someone who is very experienced in dealing with the exact subject your child is learning, can be a good investment. If a child becomes frustrated, it does not take very long for either of you to sink into a feeling of great desperation. Hiring someone that is skilled in teaching at different levels and explaining material in different ways can be exactly what is needed to move on.

7. A new approach

Finally, with the freedom to homeschool comes the freedom to choose the materials and approach used to teach every academic subject. When one isn’t working, the only right thing to do is to try another. No matter how expensive the curriculum, or how pleasing the book may be to you, if it isn’t working for your child, it’s time for a change. We have all heard of children who go from hating a subject to loving it practically overnight, simply because of a new book, a new teacher, or a new approach to learning it altogether.

As homeschooling parents approach the high school years, they may begin to wonder if their children should prepare in the same ways that other teens do. For instance, should college-bound homeschoolers take the SAT, too?

Yes!

Just like other high schoolers, many homeschooled kids will be applying to colleges, too. If a college requires the SAT (or ACT or other) examination, then homeschoolers must take it, too.

Today’s college applications process for homeschoolers is very much the same as for anyone else. Homeschoolers complete applications, provide transcripts, apply for scholarships and financial aid, and everything else that other high schoolers do.

So, if your homeschooler’s college of choice requires that SAT (most still do), be sure to schedule it on time. Ordinarily, teens take this test more than once, beginning in the 11th grade year. Since there are deadlines for applying for the test and fees to pay, don’t wait until the last minute either.

For more information about the SAT or other college tests, visit The College Board and have your teen set up an account. The account gives access to college information, test dates, plus can your teen with college readiness in other areas, too.